Many existing wipes are impregnated with a chemical solution (e.g., antimicrobial) for delivery to a contaminated surface. Unfortunately, however, such wipes may leave chemicals on the surface that are undesirable in certain applications. In response to these problems, a wipe was thus developed for simply removing bacteria from a surface. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0137540 to Villanueva, et al., for instance, describes a wipe that has a positive charge through the use of cationic treatments, such as functionalized polymers, organic or inorganic oligomers, or particles coated with functionalized polymers, organic or inorganic oligomers. The treated wipe is able to remove a substantial amount of the bacteria from a surface. Although effective, one problem with such wipes is that they do not generally convey information to the user regarding the extent to which the wipe is removing bacteria. This can lead to a variety of problems, including continued wiping of a surface that is already sanitized. Moreover, the user may lack confidence that the wipe if effectively removing bacteria even when it is in fact functioning properly.
As such, a need currently exists for a wipe that is capable of removing bacteria from a surface, and at the same time, providing an indication to the user that the wipe is functioning properly.